Just adopted two leos...

[Ratman667]

Both are in fairly poor health, however... The little one is 24g and the bigger one is 36g.

The people I adopted them from, rescued the, but didn't have the room to keep them.

Both had some shed stuck to their faces, so as soon as I got them home, I gave them a soak and massaged the skin off with Q-Tips. The larger one, was the worst. It looked like she was eating the skin off, it got stuck and couldn't finish swallowing the skin. She had about 1" of skin going down her throat.

The smaller one just had a little skin suck to his face and eye lid. I got most of it off, he still has a little on the tip of his nose and a spot on it's eye. I didn't want to stress them out anymore than I had too, so I will give them another soak tomorrow.

They are both really thin, the male more than the female, but are really good eaters. When I put them in the cage, I gave them 30 meal worms.... They are all gone. I want to give them more, but don't want them to get sick from eating too much. Should I give them more or wait until tomorrow?

I have them both housed in a 20L with 6 hides. They only have one mealie dish at the moment, but I will be getting them another tomorrow.

I have a good feeling about both of them. They are both very active and the big one is fairly strong (she kept biting me when I was removing the skin).

Besides take them to a vet, does anyone have any advice?

Female:

Male:

BTW, the cage isn't as dirty as it looks in the photos.

I will be having fecal exams done as soon as I get paid.

 

[Ratman667]

Tomorrow, when I am calling vets, is there any specific questions i should ask? I know to ask them if they have any experience with leos.


Oh, I named the male, "Bones".

 

[houseape57]

Ask about their experience yes. Also Ratman667 please seperate them. In the state of health they are in you really don't want the female to start laying eggs until she gets healthy with a nice fat tail. Good luck to you and please keep us posted. You are doing a very good thing for these two, keep up the good work.

adirondackgecko.com

 

[Kristi23]

Good luck with them!

 

[Olimpia]

Aww look at that poor little one. What a shame... it's a good thing you have them now! Yes, I would separate them also. Probably just ask them about how much food they should be eating to get back into good shape. I always keep my mealworm dish stocked and mine know when they're full, but then again, mine don't look like they're starving. So overeating could be a problem, so just ask the vet about their diet. And um... that's it probably. As long as you have all the right temps and stuff, food is the only thing they need to get healthy.

 

[malt_geckos]

Good Luck, my only advice is to house them separately because you have a male and female and the male will try to breed the female and she will get stressed. You want them to gain their weight back and be healthy and stress free.

 

[Ratman667]

I was only planning on getting one, but when I saw them I had to take them. At the moment, I don't have a way to seperate them. I guess I will have to get creative with some plexiglass.

I haven't found a vet yet, but I will keep calling.

The temps are holding at 89*-92* depending if the a/c id on or off.

 

[Bellalee]

Ducktape and cardboard also works! You gotta do what you gotta do...

Any vet can do a fecal as for dosing, I wouldn't trust someone who hasn't worked with reptiles before for a dosing schedule.

 

[Ratman667]

So, I called a bunch of vets and the only vet that will see reptiles wants $30 per fecal exam, but wont do i unless i bring the animal in for a full exam. Roughly $60 per leo. I am going to take the male in as soon as I can afford it, as the vet won't let me bring it in and pay later.

I got an aquarium devider and will be replacing the perforated plastic with a piece of solid plastic. I will put the heating pad in the middle.

Good news is, they are both eating very well and are active. Last night, they both were exploring and climbing on everything.

I was also told by the vet that without an exam, he couldn't be certain, but to keep offering them food, as much as hey will eat.

Like I said, I will get them both in for an exam as soon as I can. I have a good feeling about them, but will keep a close eye.

 

[Ratman667]

Ducktape and cardboard also works! You gotta do what you gotta do...

Any vet can do a fecal as for dosing, I wouldn't trust someone who hasn't worked with reptiles before for a dosing schedule.

Most vets in the area won't even do the exam for a reptile... At least they were honest and told me they didn't know anything about them.

 

[gekko.gurl]

They'll be really nice looking leo's once they gain some weight! Good luck!

 

[Ratman667]

They'll be really nice looking leo's once they gain some weight! Good luck!

Oh, I agree, the smaller one, Bones, judging by his eyes, looks to have albino in it. I will post some more pics as soon as they get healthier.

The bigger one, Buttercup, looks to be normal. Well, as much as she likes biting me, I am starting to think she is part alligator.

Right now, I am getting ready to give them both another soak and get the rest of the skin off.

 

[acpart]

I agree that the smaller one is an albino (either is or isn't, can't visibly have "some albino"). I also thought that the female was a normal, but on looking again, I'm not sure. She may be a very dark albino. Her markings look dark brown, not black. Take a look at her eyes and also keep an eye on her color as she gets warmer.

Aliza

 

[Ratman667]

I like saying he has a little albino though. I was saying that because I don't know what he is. I just saw albino eyes, so he has some albino. Yes, I know you are right, I just like being hard headed.

The bigger one has normal eyes.

They both just ate 3 supers apiece. I also got the rest of the skin off. Had to buy tweezers.

 

[gitrdone0420]

They look rough. I'll do fecals on them as soon as you get me a sample.

 

[Ratman667]

Well, i just noticed that Bones is blind in his left eye. It has a milky layer on it. It isn't hindering him from eating, but it is something I will have to keep in mind. I didn't notice before because that was the eye that had shed stuck on it and he kept it closed.

 

[Ratman667]

Thank you Melanie! You have no idea how much I appreciate this.

 

[acpart]

WHen you bring him to the vet, maybe s/he can determine if he's really blind or if he has a treatable infection.

Aliza

 

[Ratman667]

I will keep that in mind.

 

[Ratman667]

I got a good look at both of their eyes and they are both albino.

i compaired them to the pics i took the first day i got them and bones definatly has a little bigger tail now. it was nothing but skin and bone and now it has (very) little fat.

I got some eye wash for his eye as well.

I will keep you posted if their is any other changes.